A 43-year-old male accidentally fell from a grain cart and actually suffered a fractured thoracic vertebra!

(Disclaimer: This article is for scientific purposes only, in order to protect the patient’s privacy, the relevant information in the following content has been processed) Abstract: This case is a 43-year-old male patient, 1 hour due to a fall from a grain cart, head, neck, chest pain, so to our hospital emergency room for medical treatment. Initial diagnosis of thoracic spine fracture, after comprehensive consideration of the implementation of conservative treatment program, bed rest with taking ibuprofen extended-release capsules, calcium carbonate D3 granules, vitamin D drops medication, 1 month later the patient’s fracture site progressed well, the symptoms improved, and the instructions to discharge convalescence, 2 weeks after the re-examination. 【Basic information】 Male, 43 years old 【Disease type】 Thoracic spine fracture (thoracic spine compression fracture) 【Hospitalization】 The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University 【Date of consultation】 January 2022 【Treatment plan】 Medication (ibuprofen extended-release capsule, calcium carbonate D3 granules, vitamin D drops) 【Treatment cycle】 Hospitalization for 1 month, review after 2 weeks after discharge, outpatient follow-up in 3 months 【Treatment effect The fracture site healed well and the symptoms improved I. Initial Consultation The patient, male, 43 years old, was admitted from his home one hour ago. He fell from his family’s grain collection truck one hour ago and injured his head, neck and chest. After the injury, he suffered head bleeding, pain in the head, neck and chest, and restricted movement of the neck. Without any treatment outside the hospital, he came to the hospital as an emergency. Outpatient examination and CT of head and neck showed: frontal and parietal subcutaneous hematoma, no obvious trauma to the cervical spine. Thoracic MRI showed mild wedge-shaped changes in the T3 and T4 vertebrae, obvious flattening of the T8 vertebrae, and patchy long T1 and long T2 high STIR signals in the vertebral body and bilateral pedicles. The patient was admitted to the hospital with a thoracic vertebral fracture. The patient had no unconsciousness after the injury, and there were no nausea or vomiting symptoms. Second, the treatment process After the patient was admitted to the hospital, his head wound was sutured and bandaged, and the sutures were removed 1 week later. MRI examination, clear T3, 4 vertebral body mild wedge-shaped change, T8 vertebral body obviously flattened, after judging the compression volume is less than 1/3, after communication with the patient, to determine the treatment plan for conservative treatment. The patient was instructed to stay in bed for 6 weeks, during which time the spine was kept in a horizontal position and the trunk was kept straight when turning. The patient was instructed to take ibuprofen extended-release capsules to relieve pain symptoms. The use of calcium carbonate D3 granules in combination with vitamin D drops can improve the patient’s bone density and promote the recovery of the fracture site. Bedside X-ray was performed once a week to clarify whether the fracture site of thoracic spine recovered well. After 1 month, the patient recovered well and was arranged to be discharged from the hospital for convalescence, and returned to the hospital for review once after 2 weeks. Third, treatment effect The patient’s head and face suture was removed after 1 week, and the wound healed well. Symptomatic treatment after giving ibuprofen extended-release capsules, the patient’s head, neck and chest pain symptoms were significantly reduced. After 6 weeks of bed rest and treatment with calcium carbonate D3 granules and vitamin D drops, the fracture site healed well, and the sitting position could be maintained in the 7th week, and rehabilitation exercises could be gradually carried out on the ground in the 3rd month, and basic mobility was restored in the 10th week. During the period, the X-ray examination showed that the fracture had recovered well. The patient’s thoracic spine fracture progressed well, and I was happy for the patient, but at the same time, I didn’t forget to advise the patient that she should pay attention to the fact that she could not perform strenuous exercise and weight-bearing activities in the chest within 6 months after discharge from the hospital, so as to avoid secondary injury to the thoracic vertebrae which had not completely healed. Because of the bed rest brake time is longer, the diet should pay attention to supplement vitamins and dietary fiber, eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, can prevent constipation, at the same time is also should supplement enough calcium, protein and other nutrients, such as pay attention to supplement milk, beef, etc., is conducive to the recovery of bone fracture. Patients should turn over regularly during bed rest, which can prevent the formation of pressure sores and avoid reducing the number of turning over due to pain. V. Personal perception Thoracic spine fracture is a common type of orthopedic disease, which can gradually deteriorate with the development of the disease, so once the symptoms of thoracic and back pain, activity disorders, vertebral deformity, etc. occur, the patient with a history of back or thoracic trauma should seek medical treatment in time, and after a clear diagnosis of the disease is made, the patient should actively undergo treatment, so as to minimize the occurrence of the related complications. For example, the patient in the case of this article, due to the timely medical treatment after the occurrence of head, neck and chest fall injury, the prognosis is better, and did not lead to further development of the disease or secondary injury.